Now, we know that mind-wandering can hamper memory performance on such tests. Does doodling offer some protection against this? The results of Andrade's study: doodlers recalled 29 percent more information than nondoodlers did.

Precisely why doodling offers this protection is not quite clear, but for now here's a free yet sage piece of advice: When you're sitting through your next long, slow, mind-numbing Monday morning meeting (or while you're reading the rest of this book), doodle.